Five Players To Watch: Michigan Football vs. Nebraska

Ninth-ranked Michigan Wolverines football is set to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers Saturday night in Lincoln.

Here are five players to keep a close eye on during the showdown.

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Nebraska's offense, which features the sixth-most option runs out of any team in the country, will put the Wolverines' linebackers to the test. Redshirt junior Josh Ross is the best communicator of the bunch, and his leadership will be much needed Saturday night. We expect the team's leading tackler with 32 stops to play his responsibility and help his teammates do the same — which is where Colson comes into play.

The freshman has impressed so far this season, seeing his snap count totals increase over the last two week and actually played more snaps (20) than starter and second-year freshman Nikhai Hill-Green did last week against Wisconsin.

Colson and Hill-Green struggled when Ross was out with a "stinger injury" against Rutgers, which also runs a lot of option offense, so they'll have to step up and be sound against the Huskers. Having Ross by their side will undoubtedly help.

The Montana transfer leads the Huskers with 23 grabs for 483 yards and three touchdowns, with a 21-yards-per-reception average that ranks 10th in the country. He's extremely explosive down the field, in between the hashes, where he's caught nine passes for 357 yards and three touchdowns, according to PFF.

Hill had a rough end to the second quarter against Wisconsin — allowing two big receptions, including one touchdown grab — but he rebounded better than anyone imagined he would, knocking the Wisconsin signal-caller out on a sack and notching an interception.

Most of Hill's snaps have come as a nickel, meaning there's a good chance we'll see him primarily matched up with Toure. Making sure he's not able to pick up chunk yardage will be crucial.

Martinez has had some ups and downs throughout his career, but he's playing at a high level coming into this game. On the year, he's completed 100 of 150 passes for 1,463 yards and six touchdowns, but his legs can really hurt opposing defenses. His nine rushing touchdowns are tied for the third most out of any player, regardless of position.

Not counting sacks, Martinez has rushed for 518 yards on 63 attempts (8.2 yards per carry), with nine touchdowns (according to PFF). Twenty-one of Martinez's carries have come on scrambles out of the pocket — where he's at his most dangerous — which have gone for 341 yards and two scores. The Wolverines are on high alert, they said this week.

Is Johnson becoming redshirt freshman quarterback Cade McNamara's go-to target? It sure feels like he's on the verge of becoming just that, after scoring two touchdowns against Wisconsin. The Wolverines haven't thrown much this season, but they're going to have to continue opening up the offense more and more as the Big Ten season rages on, and they'll need receivers to step up in junior wideout Ronnie Bell's absence.

Johnson leads the team with 10 receptions for 245 yards and three touchdowns, and will look to keep his momentum going this weekend.

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